"Fancy a meatball? or Perhaps a kofta would suit?

This is probably only the second time I have ever made a kofta in my kitchen. The first time didn't work out as great as this delightful meal. It was a good few years ago when I was a newbie to cooking. I didn't bind the meat well enough to the wooden skewer and I tried to fry it at an extremely high heat, I also didn't soak the wooden skewers in water to prevent burning. Needless to say it was a total disaster. But all mistakes are made to be learnt from, therefore with a few more years of foodie wisdom behind me, I decided to make Kofta's once more. I relied more on my instincts and made up my own little recipe, which worked out really well.
Here is the recipe for this delightful middle eastern dish.

Lamb Kofta, served with thyme flatbread, minted yoghurt and a butternut, beetroot and cranberry leaf salad

5ml dry yeast

300ml warm water

500g bread flour

1/4cup olive

1 teaspoon of dried thyme

900g cubes of Deboned leg of lamb, minced

1/2cup fresh coriander

Salt and pepper

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander

2 tablespoons chopped mint

1 cup of plain yoghurt

Butternut, chopped into small cubes

Salt and pepper

Finely sliced beetroot

Cranberry salad leaves (find it at woolies)

1. For the thyme flatbread: Pour the warm water and olive oil in a bowl. Mix the thyme,flour and yeast together. Add the dry ingredients to the oil and water, knead for 5 minutes until smooth and elastic. Place in an oiled bowl, clingwrap and leave in a warm place for an hour.  Divide dough into 8 portions and roll into a circle, 1/2 cm thick. Heat a griddle pan. brush the dough with oil and fry for 2 minutes a side.
2.  Firstly put your wooden skewers in water to soak. Then put the lamb in a processor and blitzed until minced. Add the coriander, seasoning, cumin and coriander & blitz again. take portions of the seasoned minced and shape around the wooden skewers. Pour a little olive oil over them and grill for 15 minutes.
3. For the sides, mix the mint and yoghurt together. Grill the butternut with a little cumin for 20 minutes until golden, toss with the salad leaves and beetroot.
4. Serve and enjoy!